Corona Centennial’s leader of the pack just one game away from perfect

Jacob Olsson spent a year rehabilitating his knee after surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament and torn meniscus. He missed his entire junior season at Corona Centennial. Then he found out he’d be the only senior starter on the offensive line this season.

That was going to be no fun, right?

On the contrary, Olsson and his young linemates have become perhaps the best blocking unit in the history of Centennial’s powerhouse football program.

He’s the center, at 6 feet 2, 260 pounds, and his leadership and weekly performances have been instrumental in helping the Huskies average 54 points a game en route to a 14-0 record entering the CIF state championship Division I bowl game against Palo Alto (13-0) at the Home Depot Center in Carson on Friday night.

As Olsson describes it, “In the off-season and in practices, we came together. They listened to me. They asked for advice, and I took them under my wing, and we started flying.”

Centennial could be headed to the moon and beyond with an offensive line that is mobile, strong, aggressive and goes nonstop like its no-huddle, rapid-fire offensive scheme.

And in the middle of it all is Olsson, who has never lost a high school football game. He started most of the games as a sophomore when Centennial went 15-0. He sat out last season recovering from his surgery. And now he has a chance to finish 15-0 again.

“It’s amazing,” he said. “To never know how it feels to lose is pretty nice.”

Said Coach Matt Logan: “The center is the most important spot in our offensive line, and what he has done more than [from] a playing standpoint is his leadership ability. He has taken in all these young guys and made them better players.”

Olsson started working with his teammates when he was stuck on the sideline as a junior. He showed up at every practice and every game. His contribution was so positive that Logan’s assistant coaches complained about not having Olsson as an unofficial “graduate assistant” this year.

“Our coaches loved him,” Logan said. “They’d go, ‘What do we do when Jacob isn’t here next year to be our G.A.?’ I said, ‘You’d rather have him on the field. I’ll find you somebody else.’ He was awesome. He had a great attitude and was always there for teammates.”

The scary part of Centennial’s seemingly unstoppable offense is that with a line so good and so young, the Huskies have many more victories ahead. Besides Olsson, there’s sophomore tackle Cameron Hunt (6-3, 220), junior tackle Lio Lafaele (6-4, 315) and junior guard John Hamilton (5-11, 270). Another guard, Palaki Liavaa (6-2, 290), has recovered from a broken leg to join Olsson as a senior starter. And there are underclassmen serving as backups.

“I’m really comfortable with the guys,” Olsson said. “We’ve really jelled as a team.”

Among the biggest beneficiaries of the line has been quarterback Michael Eubank, whose running and passing don’t start until Olsson snaps him the ball out of the shotgun formation. Olsson rarely gets time to rest because the offense is predicated on making quick snaps while trying to wear down a defense.

“It’s completely rapid,” he said. “I have to get set right away even though the ref is standing over the ball. I have to be down in a stance ready to grab the ball any second.”

And making sure there are no bad snaps isn’t easy.

“It’s constant practice every day,” he said. “Before practice, I would be taking snaps. And after practice, I’d be taking snaps, doing footwork.”

Olsson is one win away from perfection.

“That would be perfect,” he said. “That’s a wrap.”

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